iPod* Cycling

[sam]

* So retro.

[sam]

A tie so far (my vote doesn't count).

Today's ride soundtrack was obvs,



https://youtu.be/ag8XcMG1EX4
https://youtu.be/YZUE4_PtOk0
etc.

or would've been, if I'd actually gone for a ride. I haven't worn waterproofs on the bike for years; if it's not coming down too hard (I no longer go out if it is!) I opt for a fleece, which is properly breathable, warm, and dries quickly – it's only logical.

[Regulator]

I tend to wear bone conduction headphones when cycling. 

[ravenbait]

I tend to wear bone conduction headphones when cycling.

I use them for running and walking, but wind noise makes them pointless when cycling.

I have sensory processing issues caused by Proprioceptive synaesthesia, and the sound of vehicles passing has a similar effect to being struck by a bow wave. Using earbuds means I can still hear traffic (they're not noise cancelling or isolating, and I don't have them loud), but run interference on the noise so it's tolerable.

Sam

[sam]

I'd like to try bone conduction, but not enough to actually buy them. It would be interesting to see if the diluted experience would be enough for me, or even {ironically} if I suffered sensory overload.

Voting is currently trending my way.

[Phil Hears A Who]

I find music can have a huge impact on my mood in the back end of long rides, but I don't listen to it the whole time.

My experience with bone conductors is mixed - great for a slow cruise on a still day, or trundling up a hill, but pretty much useless when the (apparent) wind gets up. Need to crank them loud to hear any music over the wind, to the point the vibrations are seriously unpleasant

[sparklyfish]

I'd like to try bone conduction, but not enough to actually buy them.

After a recent birthday, I have some bone conducting headphones - AfterShokz - which you are welcome to borrow for an extended period. The only downside is that they ye olde fashioned wired variety with a 3.5mm jack - so you'd either need a matching hole (ahem) or to also borrow my little music player too, which is now defunct for the same reasons. If this is at all of interest, do let me know.

I really love riding with my bone conducting headphones. It did take a while to get used to - you can hear the music and the birds tweeting, which I found took some practise. I've not used any other headphones, so can't really compare. I've not found them so good with classical music. My new ones are bluetooth (to go with a new phone - turns out phones don't accept 3.5mm jacks any more), and claim to have An App which does graphic equalizer, so that sounds promising.

Anyway, DM me if you'd like to borrow the wired bone-conducting headphones. They were originally a long-term loan that the clubmate didn't want back, so it feels only right to share the love!

[MattH]

I normally have music on for long solo rides. Especially doing long grinds in the middle of night with some cheesy pop helps to get into a pedalling rhythm.

I also find myself wearing earbuds (ones with a single rubber seal, an old pair of Sennheiser CX400 that have a lanyard built in) with nothing playing, to cut out wind noise that gets annoying on longer rides.

For commuting, I tend to wear AfterShokz now. They work really well, just not at speed as the wind noise gets in the way. I could wear them with foam earplugs to cut noise, but then I might as well wear in ear noisemakers. The AfterShokz are also really good on the trainer; I tend to use it at night when MrsH is in bed, so can't have speakers on, and having open ears helps me stay cool and less irritated than having a cord in the way or ears plugged/covered.

Regardless, I don't have the volume so loud that I can't hear cars around me, so tend to listen to more music than audiobooks/podcasts as I found I was missing critical bits of the spoken word when my attention switched 100% to the road around me.

On the P2W, where hearing protection is a big issue, I tend to use either etymotic in ear monitors (hooked up to Qudelix 5K bluetooth headphone amp on a lanyard) or a hideously spendy Genesis custom moulded headset if I need comms. I'd not use either of those on the bicycle as they are too isolating; I feel I need more audio cues as I don't have the visual spatial awareness that mirrors on the P2W give.

[markcjagar]

I usually roll around with an airpod in my curb-side ear

Can hear traffic fine, can't hear you mumbling at me whilst I'm overtaking you

[sam]

After a recent birthday, I have some bone conducting headphones - AfterShokz - which you are welcome to borrow for an extended period

Thank you.

Evolution of carrying a tune:



Unfortunately I couldn't locate the very nice tape player I used for years for this lineup.

[Duckfoot1606]

I use Apple Music on my smartphone, with Shokz openrun bone conducting earphones.

My hearing is failing and I want to enjoy music while I still can, I also wear Helmet angels to focus the sound of vehicles from behind

A

[sparklyfish]

After a conversation with my brother about the location of a long-lost much-loved audiobook cassette*,  my teenage offspring spent the Christmas holidays rummaging through my box of cassette tapes. They were shocked that you had to get up and turn the cassette round every 20 minutes or so. Explaining how to use the tape deck made me feel very old, and it put me in mind of watching slide shows with my grandad when I were but a lass.

* The Adventures of Treehorn by Florence Parry Heide, read by Kerry Shale. If any YACFers ever come across it in a jumble sale etc, please buy it up and I will pay you handsomely!

[sam]

Explaining how to use the tape deck made me feel very old, and it put me in mind of watching slide shows with my grandad when I were but a lass.

Reminds me of one of the great scenes from Mad Men.

"Wheels aren't seen as exciting technology"

[Afasoas]

aaah cassettes.

I have a minidisc deck and two portables, a cassette deck and a portable.
Sadly I broke the auto reverse on the portable cassette player when I changed the belt. Still searching for another one for a second go.

Have you seen the prices of blank cassettes? The type IV/Metal ones?

[sam]

Tech you could actually fix (maybe!), though once the cassette was beyond salvation it was satisfying to pull the tape out by the yard.

Have you seen the prices of blank cassettes? The type IV/Metal ones?

I have now - wow.

[Jurek]

Have you seen the prices of blank cassettes? The type IV/Metal ones?

Just before Xmas I cleared out a wooden box I had, to give to The Aussie for her to keep her art materials in.
Amongst other things I threw out were two or three TDK top-end Metal blank cassette tapes. Still sealed.
I found out today that these currently change hands on eBay for between £500.00 and £1,400.00
AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Wowbagger]

Oh bugger Jurek. That's definitely worth an "AAARRRGGGGHHH!"

[ravenbait]

Wow. I'll have to have a dig through my boxes of things I couldn't bear to throw out. I know there are some cassettes in there, although I'm not sure if there are any blank ones.

Sam

[Jurek]

In 2017, when Apple stopped making the iPod shuffle (the tiny 30mm square one, sans screen), I bought five of them.
I gave one to The Aussie.
My favourite Drum n' Bass tracks were recorded onto the other.
The intention was to record different genres of music onto the other three.
Somehow, I never got around to doing this.
They remain sealed in their original packaging.
I think I'll leave them that way.
At present, sealed ones are changing hands for around twice that which I paid for mine.
Also, some people are asking ridiculous prices for used ones.

[sam]

In 2017, when Apple stopped making the iPod shuffle (the tiny 30mm square one, sans screen), I bought five of them.
I gave one to The Aussie.
My favourite Drum n' Bass tracks were recorded onto the other.
The intention was to record different genres of music onto the other three.
Somehow, I never got around to doing this.
They remain sealed in their original packaging.
I think I'll leave them that way.

I got three, taking a chance as I'd never used a Shuffle before. Turns out



I love the bloody thing.

If a time machine were available I would've purchased a dozen; or maybe not, as I'm unsure how the batteries fare in storage. I top up the charge in the backups and use them every once in a while.

Now if only I could source earphones which won't develop distracting audio artefacts.

Like "music" such as the above example.

Lately I've been listening to classical for the first time in my life. (I generally like words with my tunes!) This threatens the limited space on my Shuffle, and I've no plans to have each specialise in a genre. Current favs are the usual suspects: Pachelbel's Canon in D, Beethoven's Symphony No.7 in A major ops. 92, Shostakovich's Jazz Suite Waltz No. 2, and a few others which tend to come up a lot on the radio. Am also very fond of the closing credits to Remains of the Day, if one is permitted to call that classical.



As someone put it in the comments, "2:14 to 3:23 blew my mind...."